Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker defends signing bill upping pension payouts for Chicago police, firefighters
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker is defending his decision to sign a bill increasing pension payouts for Chicago police and firefighters.
The bill provides Chicago first responders who were recently hired with better benefits.
Supporters said House Bill 3657 was needed to bring first responders in line with their colleagues in other departments around Illinois, Capitol News Illinois reported. The bill cleared the General Assembly almost unanimously, with only one Republican senator opposing it.
Chicago Chief Financial Officer Jill Jaworski warned a senate committee the bill could increase the city's unfunded pension liability by $11 billion and add more in annual costs, which would decrease the system's funding ratio. Chicago already faces a deficit of $1.1 billion in 2026.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson recently sounded the alarm over the city's finances, saying Chicago has reached a "point of no return."
"The members of his administration have said so, [but] I don't really know that the mayor himself opposes it, what I know is that we have helped the Chicago police get fairness in their contract," Pritzker said while preparing for the opening of the Illinois State Fair Wednesday.
Johnson said the state needs new progressive revenue options, but he did not name any specific plans.
The mayor said he is looking for ways to extract more tax dollars from the 127,000 millionaires who now call Chicago home, as well as the 25 billionaires residing inside the city limits, and is also weighing reinstating Chicago's corporate head tax. A new tax on social media advertising is also on the table.